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By Antonio Ray Harvey | California Black Media

Sen. Steven Bradford (D-Gardena) summed up what he viewed as the reason for low turnout and public engagement at the ninth meeting of the California Task Force to Study and Develop Reparations Proposals for African Americans.

“Rudimentary, basic communications of alerting the community about meetings must be mandatory. That’s the part where we failed. We have a great story to tell but we are not telling it,” Bradford said April 14 during the second session of the two-day meeting.

“Frankly, I thought we’d have standing-room only these two days. I thought everybody in California wanted to be here. I think we missed the mark in promoting the first in-person meeting. That’s where the frustration is and where it is with me.”

Held at the Third Baptist Church in San Francisco, located in the city’s historic Fillmore District, the first in-person meeting since the task force convened in June 2021 was hosted by the Rev. Amos Brown, who is vice chair of the task force.

Brown, who is also president of San Francisco’s NAACP branch, said the panel’s communication’s strategy, or lack thereof, “has been compromised.”

The few dozen attending the meeting had no difficulty finding a seat in the large sanctuary of the historic church, which is a city landmark.

Founded 170 years ago, the Third Baptist has been a spiritual and cultural hub for local community leaders and hosted national icons, including WEB DuBois, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr, Josephine Baker, Adam Clayton Powell Jr, and Paul Robeson.

Leading up to the April meeting, there were simmering disagreements about the public relations strategy of the task force. The tensions came to a head when task force chair Kamilah Moore expressed her “concerns” with the firms contracted to handle communications at the March 29 meeting.

For nearly two hours at that meeting, the panel discussed challenges it has experienced with the contracted communications teams.

The Ralph J. Bunche Center for African American Studies at the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA); Young Communications Group, a Los Angeles-based PR firm; and A/B Partners, a national social impact firm — were contracted to run the task force communication shop through the California Department of Justice.

No representative from the communication firms showed up at last week’s meeting, which was attended by six of the nine task force members on the first day. Eight task force members were present the second day.

Due to the high levels of tension that surfaced at the meeting in March, task force member Dr. Cheryl Grills said A/B Partners “resigned,” fearing harm to its reputation and the “vote of no confidence” in the company’s work as reflected in the statements of some task force members.

Concerns about the Bunche Center and two communications firms were related to “seven anchor organizations” charged with conducting community listening sessions.

Aside from the task force meetings, the anchor organizations are responsible for hosting public-engagement sessions in April, May, and June.

Grills, a professor of psychology at Loyola Marymount University, defended the Bunche Center, citing unique structural challenges hindering the organization because it functions under the umbrella state government. Grills said those problems delayed the center from performing its duties although it was “operating at warp speed” to make good on deliverables.

The bottom line, Grills shared, is that the Bunche Center has to abide by UCLA’s snail-paced process of handling contracts. The staff at the center missed two important “deliverables” in January and February waiting for greenlights from higher ups.

“The approval process is not under the purveyance of the Bunche Center,” Grills said. “We must understand that UCLA is a high-level bureaucracy of the state of California, which means that nothing happens quickly.”

Task force member Jovan Scott Lewis, chair of the Department of Geography at UC Berkeley, supported Grills’ explanation by providing his experiences with the UC system of schools.

UCLA’s Institutional Review Boards (IRBs) review and approve proposals and contracts before a research project is conducted. And each anchor organization is required to submit applications to be categorized as “vendors” by the university.

“I think that there is something to be said for the complications of getting something out of this process,” Lewis said. “When you add in the actual intellectual limits of the (anchor organizations), the requirements are typical for IRB. It’s quite reasonable to think about the delays. That’s the UC system’s (process).”

Michael Stoll, professor of public policy and urban planning, the new director of the Black Policy Project, which is housed at the Bunche Center, addressed some of the panel’s concerns by phone.

Grill said it has not been a smooth experience but offered assurances that the Bunche Center will respond to the anchor organizations’ needs and provide guidance for listening sessions.

“I think we’ve been fairly responsive,” Stoll said of addressing the anchor organizations’ needs. “Our goal was to plan and execute the listening sessions to their best potential as possible, and I think we are doing it fairly well.”

Young Communications Group (YCG), a Los Angeles-based public relations firm, did not attend the meeting in San Francisco.

While operating without financial resources, Grills said the task force, YCG and A/B partners were in the process of finalizing contracts and were ready to proceed with directions from the nine-member panel.

“Everything came to a halt at our March meeting,” Grills said. “Unfortunately, we may have put a negative spin on the reputations of communications firms that have spent years building credibility.”

Since the start of 2022, national media coverage of the task force has increased, including Moore’s appearance on MSNBC’s Tiffany Cross Show to discuss the panel’s decision to use lineage over race as the factor that determines who is eligible for compensation. That decision squeaked through with a 5-4 majority vote.

Lewis was interviewed by NBC Nightly News for a reparations-related clip involving Black Gold Rush pioneers who may have lost their land to the state in the 1940s. Other members of the task force have made their media rounds as well.

Members of the task force say they want the community-engaged listening sessions to happen without a hitch.

Seven anchor organizations will host public listening sessions that will help the task force hear various perspectives of Black Californians as it assesses the state’s involvement in slavery and Jim Crow discrimination.

Chris Lodgson, a founding member of the Coalition for A Just and Equitable California (CJEC), one of the host organizations, told the task force in San Francisco to add more communications firms.

“I gotta keep it business with you but the performance of the communications firms has been subpar,” Lodgson said. “I want to encourage (the task force) to find additional firms to get the word out to the community.”

Before the April meeting ended, Moore who is listed on the ballot as a candidate for the 28^th District Senate seat, was officially appointed the task force’s spokesperson. She and Grills will serve on the “solutions-oriented” Advisory Board Committee working directly with the Bunche Center and Young Communications to “triage” media and public affairs activities, Moore said.

“What we’re dealing with can be complex and convoluted,” task force member Monica Montgomery-Steppe said. “And getting that across on a national stage, because we are the example of what we hope for this nation, does need a larger strategy…a level of experience.”

By statute, the task force will issue a report to the Legislature by June 1, 2022, which will be available to the public.

Bradford said the communication shop can be instrumental in writing press releases and speeches, conducting research, problem-solving and disseminating information.

“This (Task Force to Study and Develop Reparations) will sell itself if we get it to the right people,” he said.

By Antonio? ?Ray? ?Harvey? ?|? ?California? ?Black? ?Media?

Pastor Amos BrownThe California Task Force to Study and Develop Reparations Proposals for African Americans will hold its ninth meeting this week on April 13 and April 14 at Third Baptist Church in San Francisco.

Both days, sessions begin at 9 a.m.

During the meeting, the task force plans to discuss the challenges some members say the committee has been having with communications organizations it has hired to develop public information campaigns and handle public relations.

The firms — the Ralph J. Bunche Center for African American Studies at the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA); Young Communications Group, a Los Angeles-based PR firm; and A/B Partners, a national social impact firm — are contracted to work with the task force through the California Department of Justice.

Task force chair Kamilah Moore expressed “concerns” with the communications firms at the task force’s March 29th meeting, questioning their ability to successfully perform the work the nine-member panel has assigned to them.

“We have given these (communications firms) upward of $1 million to do a job and they are not doing it by virtue of what has been stated in the contract,” Moore said of the issue from her perspective. “This is a serious concern. This has to be addressed sooner rather than later. We have to have a comprehensive conversation about this at our next meeting. We may have to open up the process again (to hear other communications firms) about what they can do and what deliverables they can bring to this process.”

One of the firms “missed at least two deliverables” in January and February, and the other two groups gave out a “wrong email” when they were asked for an address to a website about task force inquiries, Moore said.

Concerns about the communications firms are related to seven “anchor organizations” charged with conducting community “listening sessions,” according to Moore.

The anchor organizations — different from the communications firms – are tasked with hosting public listening sessions in April, May and June, said task force member Dr. Cheryl Grills, a professor of psychology at Loyola Marymount University.

The “anchor orgs,” as they are referred to in meetings, will help the task force hear various perspectives of Black Californians as it assesses the extent of the state’s involvement in slavery and Jim Crow discrimination.

Grills took issue with Moore raising concerns about the communications firms, specifically bringing up allegations involving her, without giving prior notice before speaking about them in public.

Pushing back, Grills publicly said Moore met with an attorney that “organizes” and “convenes” meetings for the anchor organizations a week before the task force’s eighth meeting held March 29 and March 30. Moore did not lodge any complaints with the attorney, Grills stated.

“You didn’t raise any concerns, so then you bring it up in a public forum,” Grills told Moore during the meeting. “You cast a potentially negative light on the communications firms and the Bunche Center. That feels unfair to me. From a process perspective, this is troubling to me how you are operating.”

The task force’s vice chair Amos Brown is the pastor of Third Baptist Church, where the next meeting will be held. It is located at 1399 McAllister in San Francisco.

On the first day of the April meeting, the history of discrimination at colleges and professional education institutions and the school-to-prison Pipeline will be discussed.

On the second day, the task force will preview its first report.

On the afternoon of April 14, the communications firms will present their strategies for responding to press inquiries, facilitating meetings for the anchor organizations and educating the California public on report findings.

The Ralph J. Bunche Center for African American Studies was founded in 1969 as the Center for Afro-American Studies It was renamed in 2003 for diplomat, scholar, activist, and UCLA alumnus Ralph J. Bunche, who was the first Black person the win the Nobel prize.

According to its website, the Bunche Center supports research that expands the knowledge of the history, lifestyles, and sociocultural systems of people of African descent. It also “investigates problems” that have relevance to the psychological, social, and economic well-being of persons of African descent.

Recently, the work the task force is doing has been garnering national attention. But members say they must implement a stronger communications and public relations strategy leading up to the release of its findings.

By statute, the task force must issue a report to the Legislature by June 1, 2022. Their findings will be available to the public.

Other task force members who have fielded complaints about the communications firms are Sen. Steve Bradford (D-Gardena), Assemblymember Reggie Jones-Sawyer (D-Los Angeles), and San Diego City Councilwoman Monica Montgomery-Steppe.

Brown told the nine-member panel that “communications have to be at an optimum.”

He told his colleagues that the task force must leverage mainstream media, and Black-owned newspaper reporters, editors, and publishers should be contacted and informed of the group’s activities.

The civil rights leader said that Black churches, nonprofits that do community activism, and social organizations should have inside knowledge of the task force leading up and after the reports are submitted to the state legislature.

“We’re in the driver’s seat. We have to tell them what we want to be done without delay,” Brown said of the communications firms. “If they can’t fulfill it … we might have to make a change.”

 

 

By. J Edgar Boyd, Senior Minister and CEO of First AME Church

Faith and science are not opposing forces: they are two sides of the same coin that have saved countless lives throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. The vaccinations that are protecting Californians as we enter the third year of battling this deadly virus are nothing short of miraculous and have given Christians new meaning to the edict to “love thy neighbor” by helping their community and themselves stay safe and healthy.

As we reflect upon Jesus’ sacrifice during Lent and prepare to celebrate Easter with our congregations, friends and loved ones, let’s continue to do our part as good neighbors and people of faith, to protect our family, friends, and ourselves from COVID-19 by getting vaccinated and boosted.

For two years, Californians have led with kindness and understanding on our united mission to prevent additional COVID-19 cases and keep our loved ones safe. This Easter, we look forward to seeing many members of our congregations in-person, some for the first time since the pandemic began.

But even though California recently moved forward from most public health restrictions of the COVID-19 pandemic with the state’s SMARTER Plan, it remains critical to continue practicing the measures that we know work and have helped lower case rates as we resume activities, visit with family and friends, and go to work and school. We know that vaccination remains our best tool against COVID-19 and getting eligible family members ages 5 and older vaccinated and boosted protects them from the worst outcomes of COVID-19 is extremely important.

Vaccinations have helped us overcome the most recent surge and see infection levels decline, especially for our kids who have experienced tremendous stress, puts their young lives on hold and patiently waited to fully resume their daily routines.

Children remain susceptible to COVID-19. More than 700,000 children and adolescents in California have been infected with COVID-19. There have been more than 6,500 pediatric hospitalizations in our state since July of last year, and we have lost 38 young lives since the start of the pandemic. Children can also experience “long COVID,” and the virus can also cause Multi-system Inflammatory Syndrome in Children (MIS-C), in which a hyperactive immune system attacks the child’s body.

According to the California Department of Public Health, comprehensive clinical trials involving more than 4,500 children ages 5-11 demonstrate that the COVID-19 vaccine is safe and effective in this age group, resulting in a strong antibody response in children who received the vaccine. The COVID-19 vaccine was found to be safe for children ages 5-11, with only mild side effects like fatigue, fever, and headache.
In addition, while wearing masks in public is no longer mandated, it is still strongly recommended by state health officials and is required in healthcare facilities, public transit, long-term care facilities and other high-transmission settings.

Protecting our kids from COVID-19 provides parents, and pastors, peace of mind as we get back to in-person activities and spend more time with the ones we love. When you are ready to get your child or yourself vaccinated, you can visit MyTurn.ca.gov or call 833-422-4255 to schedule an appointment. Help is available in more than 200 languages.

Several churches around Southern California are helping their communities get protected against COVID-19 ahead of the Easter holiday by hosting vaccine and testing clinics:

• FAME LA, 2270 S. Harvard Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90018: Saturday, 4/16 from 9:00 am – 2:00 pm
• Temple of Deliverance, 38448 20th St. E., Palmdale, CA 93550: Friday, 4/15 from 4:00 – 8:00 pm
• Burning Bush, 14849 Seventh St., Victorville, CA 92395: Saturday, 4/16 from 10:00 am – 4:00 pm
• 16th St. SDA, 1601 W. 16th St., San Bernardino, CA 92411: Easter Sunday, 4/17 from 12:00 – 4:00 pm

This spring, let’s take solace in knowing that getting our eligible family members vaccinated or boosted can protect them from the worst outcomes of COVID-19, including hospitalization and even death. By taking these precautions and gaining protection, we can safely celebrate a joyous Easter with our family, friends and congregation together once again.

 

By Lou Yeboah

Living between the Tik and the Tok! What’s wrong with you? What is your life? It is even a vapor, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanishes away. [James 4:13-17]. Listen, God’s offer is only guaranteed for today. [2 Corinthians 6:2] says, “Now is the accepted time; behold now is the day of salvation.” God has given you the opportunity to give your life to Him in this era of human history, but if you neglect it, the Lord could come any day as a thief in the night, and it would be forever too late. Living between the Tik and the Tok. What’s wrong with you? Don’t wait until it’s too late!

[Hebrews 12:17] says of Esau, “For you know that even afterwards, when he desired to inherit the blessing, he was rejected, for he found no place for repentance, though he sought for it with tears.” The awful story of the rich man and the poor man summarized in two words: TOO LATE! The rich man in hell did everything that the poor man did on earth; however, he did them simply TOO LATE! Wake up! The time is short! [Romans 13:11-14]. How much time is left? We don’t know. That is a mystery that God holds in His hand, and He will not tell us. But what he does tell us in [Romans 13:11-14] it’s later than you think. Time is passing quickly! I tell you; the hour has come for you to wake up from your slumber because our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed. The night is nearly over the day is almost here.” Living between the Tik and the Tok while the supreme Event of history is around the corner! Jesus is standing at the very threshold of returning again! Get it together before your Tik-Tok runs out!

Like the parable of the wise and foolish virgins, the wise had oil in their lamps. They didn’t wait till the bridegroom was near to start preparing, they were always prepared, get it together, because I tell you, the last days are not coming, they are already here. Repent Now Before It Is Too Late! Christ is not going to wait forever. For He says in [Genesis 6:3], “My Spirit will not always strive with man.” God appeals to you today, seek ye the Lord. Seek Him while there is yet time, for when He stands up and the temple is filled with smoke, it’s too late. The harvest is past, the summer is ended, and you are not saved. [Jeremiah 8:20]. How tragic! Living between the Tik and Tok!

Listen, you may be like the men of Athens who said– “we will hear thee again of this matter” go away – [Acts 17:32]. You may be like Agrippa, “Almost thou persuadest me to be a Christian” – [Acts 26:28]. I want you to know that everyone will give an account to God, no one will escape. God spared not the angels, God spared not Sodom, God spared not the old world which was destroyed in Noah’s flood and God will not spare this current world. Be sure of this one thing, God’s wrath and judgment is coming to this world. They will say peace and safety, they will be going about business as per usual, they will be marrying and giving in marriage, they will be eating, drinking, and partying. They will know not until the day of the Lord comes like a thief in the night. Maybe you just think you can live your life how you want now and worry about where you’re heading later or negotiate it when you get there. Well make no mistake, the Bible is very clear that there comes a time when it is too late to be saved. [2 Corinthians 6:2]– For he saith, I have heard thee in a time accepted, and in the day of salvation have I succored thee: behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation. When God stops dealing with you, it’s over. For there is a time for every unbeliever when it is too late. And only God knows the time, it is not for me or any man to say. But I can only imagine the sheer terror of realizing I have refused God one too many times. I want you to know that in Daniel, Belshazzar saw the writing on the wall. Judgment had been declared. It was too late. That night Babylon fell, and Belshazzar was slain. The Bible records his trembling, his fear, his knees smote together in terror. He found no place of repentance, he found no mercy, he found no grace. God was done with him forever. In Genesis, when the angels came to Sodom, judgment had already been declared. Their fate was sealed. The angels came to save Lot and destroy the city. All the inhabitants were dead men walking even before the angels arrived in Sodom. Symbolically, they desperately groped for the door in the darkness, but like the handle to the door eluded them, so had the door to eternal life been slammed shut for eternity. They were in the mist of darkness forever.

We see the longsuffering of God in Genesis with the story of Noah. Noah preached repentance, he warned of coming judgment, he warned the people of impending doom, the invitation to be saved and avoid judgment was extended for many, many years. But one day, the offer was withdrawn. There came a day when God shut him in. It was over, even before the raindrops began to fall before the fountains of the deep were broken up before there was any sign of the impending deluge. One can only imagine the icy hand of terror which took hold of their hearts as the rain fell and the water exploded up from underneath. They would no doubt have been hammering on the door of the ark, pleading to be let in. Fingernails began desperately clawing at the door. Noah, Noah, let us in! Noah, Noah, we believe you now! The door was shut forever. Eternal darkness, eternal punishment, eternal wrath awaited even as they were scurrying for higher land. The water covered the earth, the only people who survived were those in the ark. There would have been many that realized that Noah was right, but too late.

Today, the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely. [Revelation 22:17]. Leaving the Tik-Tok behind!

 

By Craig DeLuz | Special to California Black Media Partners

In the wake of the horrific mass shooting that took place in Sacramento, California, over the last week, politicians and media pundits have rushed to their soapboxes to proclaim, once again, that guns are the root of all evil and the cause of the recent violent crime wave that has gripped our nation. They share with whomever will listen, their prognosis for ending crime as we know it.

“We need more ‘common sense’ gun laws,” they say.

But there are a number of underlying truths that they will dare not share with the public. Because if they do, it will become clear that they and their policies are not the solution. They are, in fact, the root of the problem.

Here are just a few of those truths they will not dare share:

We do not have a Gun Violence problem. We have a Violence problem

Guns have been a part of the American lexicon since the very beginning. For generations, society had a healthy relationship with the second amendment. Firearms were given their proper respect as tools to be used to feed one’s family, defend one’s home or fight for one’s liberty. It is only recent generations that have concluded that violence is an acceptable way to address the myriad of issues confronting them.  The firearm is not the cause of this. In fact, it is not even the weapon of choice.

While it is true that 77% of homicides in 2020 were committed with firearms, 92% of all violent crimes do not involve firearms. The overwhelming majority of violent offenses – including robberies, rapes and other sex crimes – almost always involve other weapons or no weapons at all. And there is no doubt that the number of instances of all these offenses are increasing.

Guns are no more the cause of this violence than cars are the cause of drunk driving.

Gun control does nothing to reduce crime in general, let alone violent crime

There is a popular saying amongst statisticians, “There are lies, damn lies and then there are statistics.” Politicians and the media have been using all three to push their false narrative about gun control laws. They would have you believe that studies support the idea that the best way to reduce violent crime is to pass more gun laws. But nothing could be further from the truth.

A 2020 study done as a part of the RAND Corporation’s Gun Policy in America initiative, revealed that of the 27,900 research publications on the effectiveness of gun control laws, only 123 (0.4%) were found to meet a base level of academic rigor. They also noted that the only reliable conclusion one could get from those 123 studies was that there is zero evidence that gun control laws have any effect of violence in general or gun violence specifically.

The recent increase in violent crime is directly linked to “Smart on Crime” (read soft-on-crime) policies

Violent crime was at an all-time high in the early 1990s fueled by gangs and the drug trade. This led to federal, state and local initiatives aimed at stemming the tide. Tough-on-crime initiatives were enacted that included, among other things, increased policing and mandatory minimums for a number of crimes.

Crime (especially violent crime) would go on the decline for the next 20-plus years.

Then in the 2010s, several states began instituting “Smart on Crime” policies that decriminalized a number of criminal offenses and let violent criminals out of prison. That wasn’t the intention of those who supported these policies. But that is, in fact, what happened.

Case in point: Back in 2018 Smiley Martin was sentenced to 10 years in prison for punching a girlfriend, dragging her from her home by her hair and whipping her with a belt. But, sadly, under California law, these are considered non-violent offenses, making Mr. Martin eligible for a reduced sentence under Proposition 57. So, instead of sitting in a jail cell serving the fifth year of a 10-year sentence, he was walking the streets of Sacramento with a modified automatic pistol.

This story is not the first. It is not even unique to Sacramento. Just a month earlier, three children and their chaperone were killed by their father who should have been in ICE custody. But under California’s Sanctuary State policy, David Mora Rojas, who was locked up for assaulting a highway patrol officer was released from police custody; set free to kill his children.

While the media and politicians deny the correlation and instead seek to blame guns; the increase in crime, especially violent crime, directly corresponds with the change in our criminal justice policies.

This is about race. But not in the way you think it is.

Gun control has always been about keeping “Those People” from being able to own firearms. Following the Civil War, southern states enacted ‘Black Codes’ making it illegal for newly freed slaves to own guns. In the 1870s, California would pass laws preventing the sale of firearms and ammunition to Native Americans (then referred to as Indians.) In the 1920s California acted again, prohibiting the sale of firearms to the “Chinese” or “Mexicans”. Then in the 1960s, California would pass the Mulford Act, eliminating the ability to openly carry loaded firearms in public as a way to disarm the Black Panther Party.

The truth is that the gun debate has always been rooted in racism. However, those who push these policies are the true victimizers.

Consider that the last gun case to be heard by the U. S. Supreme Court (McDonald v. Chicago) was brought by a Black man who simply wanted to be able to defend his home from the ravages of gang and drug violence. This underscores two very important, yet often overlooked truths:

• Policies that release habitual criminals into our neighborhoods lead to the victimization of people in those communities. These policies disproportionately impact people of color.

• Gun Control Laws only serve to restrict the ability of law-abiding citizens to own or possess firearms they may need to protect themselves and their loved ones. These laws also disproportionately affect people of color.

We are often told that young Black and Brown men are disproportionately impacted by gun violence. But it is rarely noted that young Black and Brown men are disproportionately the ones pulling the trigger. The sad fact is that people who seek to victimize others (Black, White, Latin, Asian, etc.) tend to go after people who look like them.

So, while it is noble to try and reduce the number of young Black men in our criminal justice system, we cannot ignore that in doing so, we have put Black men, women and children at risk of being their victims.

At the same time, we are limiting the ability of these very same folks to be able to defend themselves from the very danger we have put in their path.

To any objective observer, these truths are self-evident. Most of the media and political elite have proven themselves to be anything but objective observers. If we are to ever address the scourge of violence in our streets, it will only happen when we all come to grips with these and many other truths.

About the Author
Craig DeLuz is President of 2ANews Corporation and hosts a daily news and political talk show “The Rundown.”

By Antonio Ray Harvey| California Black Media

The California Legislative Black Caucus (CLBC) added another member to its roster last week.

Former Suisun City Mayor Lori D. Wilson, a Democrat, was sworn into office April 6 to represent the 11th Assembly District. Wilson won a special election following the resignation of former Assemblymember Jim Frazier, also a Democrat.

“I am deeply humbled and grateful to have the opportunity to serve our communities in the State Assembly,” Wilson said in a statement. “From constituents who need help with state services, to challenges like rising homelessness, climate change, and keeping our neighborhoods and communities safe, I promise to work every day to deliver results for our communities, and to be a relentless advocate for every person who lives in our district.”

Wilson was the lone candidate on the ballot for the special election. She will serve out the remainder of Frazier’s current term, which ends on Dec. 5, but she must clear another hurdle to continue serving voters in the 11th District, an area stretching from the Bay Area to the Sacramento Valley, covering East Bay cities like Antioch, Pittsburg, Fairfield and Walnut Grove.

Wilson is on the ballot in the Democratic primary election on June 7. The first Black female mayor to serve in Solano County, Wilson will run for re-election to serve a full, two-year term. She has one challenger for the seat.

“Lori Wilson is competent and capable. She has the knowledge and the skills to make a difference in the Legislature. Her integrity and consistency are her greatest assets,” said David C. Isom, Vice President, Fairfield-Suisun Unified School District.

Shortly after she was sworn into office last week at the State Capitol, a day after the special election, Speaker of the Assembly Anthony Rendon (D-Lakewood) appointed Wilson as Assistant Majority Whip.

Rendon also appointed her to the Accountability and Administrative Review Committee, the Appropriations Committee, the Banking and Finance Committee, and the Privacy and Consumer Protection Committee.

K. Patrice Williams, a Solano County businesswoman, community leader and advocate said Wilson’s hard work on the campaign trail paid off.

“Today was epic in so many ways because of 26,293 votes in a special election,” she posted on Facebook. “Mayor Lori Wilson is now Assemblymember Lori D. Wilson. We sent Lori to the Capitol with people power. Congratulations to Lori and US!”

In Southern California, nonprofit director and businesswoman Tina Simone McKinnor, 58, and Lawndale Mayor Robert Pullen-Miles, 55, will face off in a run-off special election in June for the vacant 62nd District Assembly seat.

Both Black Democratic candidates, Mckinnor and Pullen-Miles were the top-two finishers in the special primary held on April 5, 2022, to replace former Assemblymember Autumn Burke, who resigned in February.

As of April 8, McKinnor was leading with 11,190 votes (39%) to Pullen-Miles’ 9,918 votes (35%). Nico Ruderman and Angie Reyes, both Democrats, trailed with 3,781 (13%) and 3,765 (13%) votes, respectively.

The CLBC currently has 11 members, including Wilson. The other members are Sen. Steven Bradford (D-Gardena), chair; vice chair Sen. Sydney Kamlager (D-Los Angeles); and Assemblymembers Reggie Jones-Sawyer (D-Los Angeles), Mike Gipson (D-Carson), Chris Holden (D-Pasadena), Kevin McCarty (D-Sacramento), Jim Cooper (D-Elk Grove), Mia Bonta (D-Alameda), Akilah Weber (D-San Diego) and Isaac Bryan (D-Los Angeles).

 

Senate has confirmed Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Jackson was confirmed 53-47. Three Republican senators — Mitt Romney (Utah), Lisa Murkowski (Alaska), and Susan Collins (Maine) — joined all 48 Democrats and two independents in voting to confirm Jackson to the nation’s highest court.

Jackson, 51, will become the Supreme Court’s 116th justice and the first Black woman ever to sit on its bench.

Vice President Kamala Harris, the nation’s first woman, first Black person, and first Asian American to hold that office, presided over the historic vote.

“In the 233-year history of the Supreme Court, never has a Black woman held the title of justice,” Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said in a speech before the vote. “Ketanji Brown Jackson will be the first, and I believe the first of more to come.”

Jackson watched the vote unfold with President Joe Biden at the White House.

Jackson will take her seat when Justice Stephen Breyer retires this summer. She will be the third Black justice, after Thurgood Marshall and Clarence Thomas, and the sixth woman.

By Antonio? ?Ray? ?Harvey? ?|? ?California? ?Black? ?Media?

The Sacramento Police Department (Sac PD) has made two arrests in the mass shooting that happened in the early hours of April 3 in downtown Sacramento.

Brothers, Dandrae Martin, 26, and Smiley Martin, 27, are in SAC PD custody.

Dandre Martin was booked Monday for felony assault and illegal firearm possession charges, according to Sac PD. Charges against Smiley Martin, who was hospitalized after sustaining injuries during the shooting, are for possession of a firearm by a prohibitive person and possession of machine gun.

According to public records, the younger Martin has an outstanding arrest warrant in Riverside County for violating two terms of his probation related to a domestic violence arrest in 2014.

His older brother, Smiley Martin, was granted early release last year from a 10-year prison sentence for domestic violence and assault with great bodily harm — despite opposition from Sacramento County District Attorney Anne Marie Schubert.

Schubert said Martin assaulted his girlfriend who he had been “encouraging” and “assisting” to work as prostitute.

“He located her hiding in her bedroom closet and hit her repeatedly with a closed fist on the face, head, and body, causing visible injuries,” Schubert wrote in a letter opposing Martin’s release. “He then dragged her out of the home by her hair to an awaiting car. After he put her in the car, he assaulted her with a belt.”

Six people died from the shooting. The 12 wounded individuals who survived the incident suffer from minor to critical gunshot wounds. They are all in stable condition.

The investigation is ongoing.

“We want to thank the community for the overwhelming assistance that has been provided. To date, we have received over 100 videos and/or photo files provided through the community evidence portal. We continue to encourage the community to use the community evidence portal to directly provide the department with photos and videos,” Sac PD said in a statement Apr. 4

As the investigation progressed, Sac PD Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) team and other detectives served search warrants at three residences in an area that has yet to be disclosed. At least one handgun reportedly related to the shooting has been recovered.

The shootings that have made headlines across the state and around the world happened in an area near the California State Capitol known for its restaurants and bars, a popular after-work hangout for politicians, staffers and other government workers.

Around 2:00 a.m., Sac PD officers responded to the sounds of shots fired in the busy part of downtown around 10th and K Streets, four blocks east of the Golden 1 Center where the NBA’s Sacramento Kings play. Over 100 rounds were reportedly fired into a crowd.

The deceased are Sergio Harris, 38; Melinda Davis, 57; Yamile Martinez-Andrade, 21; Johntaya Alexander, 21; Joshua Hoye-Lucchesi, 32; and 29-year-old DeVazia Turner.

Stevante Clark, a Sacramento activist, told California Black Media two victims, Harris and Turner, were related.

Clark said he was with Harris’s wife Leticia Harris when a Sac PD Captain, at Clark’s insistence, told her about her husband’s death. Clark said Mrs. Harris was “out there all (Sunday) morning,” trying to get information.

“This is so sad. It breaks my heart” Clark said. “This is community violence.”

The Sacramento County District Attorney’s Office will be “reviewing all related evidence in this investigation” to determine appropriate charges, the Sac PD stated.

On the afternoon of Apr. 3, Sacramento Police Chief Kathy Lester said a “stolen handgun” was recovered at the scene. Sac PD stated after the arrests that the weapon had been “inspected and found to have been converted” to a gun “capable of automatic gunfire.”

Sunday’s mass shooting is the second in Sacramento in under two months. On Feb. 28, five people were shot and killed after a man opened fire at a church in the state’s capital. The man shot and killed his three children and a man who was with them before taking his own life.

No link has been established between the mass shooting and organized crime, but gang activity has been on the rise in Sacramento.

In November 2021, California Attorney General Rob Bonta announced the results of a multiagency investigation into Sacramento-based criminal street gang activity that resulted in a number of arrests.

Gangs in the area are allegedly responsible for a series of violent crimes, including homicides. A total of 26 individuals were arrested, and more than 125 firearms were seized by state agents.

Most of the firearms confiscated were assault weapons, including “ghost guns.”

Ghost guns are un-serialized and untraceable firearms that can be purchased online and assembled. They are often sold through “ghost gun kits.”

Lester did not provide details of the stolen handgun used in Sacramento’s most recent shooting, but the SAC PD chief said a semi-automatic, high-velocity weapon was used.

“What happened is the biggest and most recent example of what we all know,” Lester said at a news conference hours after the deadliest shooting in the city’s history. “Gun violence is truly a crisis in our community, and it has increased not only here in Sacramento but across the nation.”

By Joe W. Bowers Jr. | California Black Media

What happens when you’re a vocal critic of bad decisions made by administrators at your local school district?

If Inglewood Unified is your local school district, you might receive an email from one of their highest priced lawyers questioning your intelligence and warning you that he is determining if you’ve engaged in actions that could be interpreted as threatening to people. The following is the email I received:

Dear Mr. Bowers:

I am in receipt of your email to Dr. Torres demanding a response to your Public Records Act Request (“PRAR”) concerning contracts or communications with TSS. The District’s response which was sent 41 minutes prior to your email was fully compliant with its obligations. I cannot tell if you took the time to review the website contained in the District’s response. Assuming it took you 15 minutes +/- to draft your email to Dr. Torres you certainly did not have time to conduct a thorough review of the material to which you were directed. Either way, the District has responded to your PRAR, and your email correspondence is moot.

On a different but related note, I have been advised that you have been in communication with TSS and made various threats or comments or statements which could be interpreted as threats. I am waiting for confirmation of the timing and content of those communications before taking any further action. I would, however, caution you that First Amendment rights do have limits and that in the heat of the moment people say things and/or threaten actions which take themselves outside of that protection. I suggest you consider keeping that in mind.

Finally, in the future please direct all further communications to the District to my attention. Your communications are increasingly hostile and District staff and administrators are entitled to perform their duties without fear of harassment or threats no matter how much you a person may disagree with their actions.

Thank you for your attention to this matter and compliance with my request.

David
David M. Orbach, Esq.
Orbach Huff & Henderson LLP

Recently I wrote an op-ed titled “Opinion: Closing Warren Lane Elementary in Inglewood Is a Terrible Decision.” The school district has experienced a significant decline in enrollment and closing some schools is fiscally responsible. The criteria they’re using to select which schools to close deserve scrutiny and criticism because they are not employing California Department of Education best practices.

Warren Lane has more attributes justifying keeping it open than shortcomings that justify closing it.

Conducting research for the op-ed, I made a California Public Records Act (CPRA) request for information about Total School Solutions (TSS), the consulting company that recommended closing Warren Lane Elementary School.

I wanted to review the TSS contract because, according to the California Secretary of State’s website, their business license was suspended by the Franchise Tax Board. When a company’s business license is suspended, technically, they can’t legally transact business until it is resolved.

The school district waited the maximum time CPRA allows to respond to requests and then informed me the information I was requesting could be found on the school district’s website.

The information I was seeking is not there. So, I notified County Administrator Dr. Torres that the school district was not being responsive to my public records request and demanded that they provide the records requested.

Rather than complying with my request, the school district is playing hardball and doubling down on withholding the information. And, to rub it in, sent the email that you just read.

Orbach, a lawyer Inglewood Unified has on retainer, seemed fascinated by how fast I answered the email they sent me about my public records request. He calculated my response time and concluded that no way was I capable enough to review the website as quickly as I did and conclude it did not have the information I requested.

I don’t know if Orbach is a racist, but I find his timekeeping stunt and comments about my response time are. If he intended to insult me, he failed because I don’t care what he thinks. Also, my correspondence was not “moot” because Inglewood Unified is hiding the TSS contract in violation of
CPRA.

But what is more disturbing and insidious about Orbach’s email was his disclosing that he had “been advised” that I have “made various threats” and he’s “waiting for confirmation”. I regard his disclosure as trying to be intimidating and bordering on character assassination.

Now, if he is referring to anything I’ve written about the closing of Warren Lane, no one has commented that I’ve said anything threatening.

My contact with TSS was only to confirm the status of their suspended business license on the Secretary of State’s website.

It’s clear to me what the school district lawyer is trying to do. Dog whistle phrases like “increasingly hostile”, “heat of the moment”, and “before taking any further action” say to me, “you’re an out-of-control angry Black man and if you don’t back off, the law is coming after you.”

It looks like criticizing Inglewood Unified about closing Warren Lane touched a nerve, although the email does not mention Warren Lane. But implying that my communications have been threatening to people, I feel, is a veiled attempt at getting me to stop criticizing a terrible decision.

Orbach’s aggressive action on behalf of the school district needed to be exposed and rebuked, that’s the reason I wrote this op-ed.

Taxpayer dollars are involved. He is directing me to send any communications I have with the school district to his attention and he’s surely not reviewing them pro bono.

The Los Angeles County Office of Education has oversight responsibility for Inglewood Unified. The public deserves to know why a school district which is in state receivership is permitted to pay a lawyer to try to silence a community member exercising their First Amendment rights.

 

Life is full of ups and downs, and you never know how your plans can be easily turned around. It’s a given that racial trauma causes pain, strain and distress, but it is often suppressed.

Lisa Collins, Ed.D is an educational researcher who planned to study trauma, but instead explored her lived experiences. She became her own research subject after her medical doctor demanded she take time off from work. The outcome? Dr. Collins examined her racial trauma and found a solution and healing for herself and others. She recently reflected on healing from racial trauma at a TEDx Carioba Studio event, an independently organized TED event, released March 2, 2022.

Dr. Collins has an interesting backstory and comes from a loving family. Fostering healing was ingrained in her throughout her life. Her grandfather was a sharecropper in rural Arkansas and worked until he could have enough money to have his own land.

“I believe that my grandfather, mother and my ancestors racially fought for me, and they did. And now I’m fighting for the racial well-being of my children, and their healing,” she recalls.

The request to take time off from work was a wake-up call for Dr. Collins. In the middle of researching trauma for her doctorate, she started looking at herself and reflecting on her own life. After her primary care doctor suggested taking time away from work, Dr. Collins began her journey through racial healing. When she heard a small voice say, “You’re the subject of your research,” she listened and an autoethnography was born.

Dr. Lisa Collins’s research on Healing from Racial Trauma: A Consciousness Journey in Autoethnography, examines the ever-going frustrations of people of color that generate racial trauma and health implications, silenced by ignorance and avoidance. During her TEDx talk, she describes instances of microaggression in predominantly white institutions as the catapult for her research on racial trauma, and her experiences as the basis of that research.

Dr. Collins wrote about her lived experiences in three organizations. She gathered data, pictures, poems, written reflections, experiences, and discerned each one. She coded them. Coding and qualitative research are how she defined and understood each artifact. She looked at each artifact and highlighted parts or all of it.

“So, my research consists of 61 artifacts and 178 highlighted quotes,” she explained. “Six themes emerged. Organizational trauma, racial trauma, systemic oppression, settler colonialism, white supremacy, and racial healing. The most prevalent experience was racial trauma. The one with the least amount was racial healing. Racial trauma happened five times more than racial healing.”

Racial trauma, according to Dr. Collins, is unlike other forms of trauma. She believes that most black people experience racial trauma regularly. She said that many of us have learned how to suppress it and because of that, we are confronted with unforeseen health complications.

As a black educator, racial trauma cumulated the inevitable stress, anger and anxiety that she felt throughout her career. The lack of racial trauma awareness for people of color shut the door to healing and confronting generational trauma that exists in BIPOC communities.

Dr. Collins’ research yielded a call to action for greater community well-being and racial healing groups for BIPOC and NON-BIPOC people. Her research and her healing led to a coaching model that will help people of color to be able to recognize, learn, heal and pass it on to other people. Using her research, Dr. Collins aims to coach people of color on how to live in white spaces

without losing their sense of self and identity. She currently facilitates racial healing spaces at various times during the year. With a resulting goal to help others build community and heal from the past, she is well on her way to creating a better future for us all.

About Lisa Collins
Lisa Collins is an educational professional with over 25 years of experience. She holds degrees in psychology and education and works as an assistant professor at Lewis and Clark College and the Director of her small business, Education Through Engagement, LLC. As a learning and development professional, she supports talent management and business partners to solve workforce challenges. She brings a gender and equity lens to her working environments and her communities as a person of color. She uses Conscious Freedom and Interpersonal Neurobiology frameworks to enhance her consulting. Dr. Collins brings multiple perspectives, creates community, and studies racial healing to her work. She serves on the Oregon Assembly of Black Affairs, the advisory board for Strategies of Trauma Awareness and Resilience with Eastern Mennonite University, and On The Inside, a creative outlet and healing for incarcerated women.

Creatively, Dr. Collins is a playwright and filmmaker with works produced in New York (Manhattan Repertory Theater) and Portland (Hipbone, Portland Center Stage, and the Armory). Her short film, Be Careful What You Ask For has won selection in the Fertile Ground New Work Virtual Festival 2021, Manhattan Repertory Short Stories Film Festival 2021, Pacific Northwest Multicultural Film Festival 2021, and Portland Film Festival 2021. She is also currently the host of her own Podcast, Love and Light with Dr. Lisa. The show is designed to identify and find the need for a life of peaceful love-filled existence and engagement with tough topics by leaning in and incorporating healing. The Podcast is featured on the #1 positive talk network, streaming live on www.transformationtalkradio.com.

For more information on Dr. Lisa Collins and her research, please call 971-238-9608 or visit www.educationthroughengagement.com.